P artner ship We ar e con tinuing to pursue partnership with the other churches in the t own dir ectly , such as with F elixs t ow e Methodist Church and through the Chur ches T ogether in F elixs towe. We ha v e now established an occasional but r egular pat tern of shar ed services with F elixs towe Methodist Chur ch. Mos t recently , on 20 th October , we were joined at the URC f or our Caring f or Creation Service. On 17 th November we joined the congr egation at F elixs t owe Methodis t Chur ch @ T rinity f or wor ship led by R evd Da vid. Macmillan Coffee M orn ing As pa rt of o ur partner ship working with t he Methodist Chur ch, on Satur day 28 th Sept ember we held a joint Coffee Morning, held at T rinity Church with f olk from the URC supporting and sharing in the preparati on and serving on the day . The coff ee morning was held in aid o f Macmil lan Ca ncer S up port. The proceeds on the da y r aised £466.29. With some further donati ons this mea nt that a cheque for £691.29 was sent to the charity .

Time to Rememb er It has beco me an annual f eature, since the Covid lock down time during which we as a chur ch los t a great man y member s and frie nds, to hold an an n ual ser v ice o f reme mberi ng. This year we hel d this spe cial service on Sunday 27 th October , led by R evd David. The ser vice provided a spa ce to reflect, give thanks and acknowledge our gratitude and sense of loss f or departed lov ed ones. P ause f or Pr a yer For sever al mon ths now , we have held a short, mon thly pr a yer time bef or e wor ship (fro m 10:10 to 1 0:25) on o ne Sunday each mont h. We ha v e normally g a thered in the vestry with various pe ople joining us. Mor e r ecently we have held our meeting in the transept which mak es it more visible and accessible for some. During the winter months we ha ve r eturned to the vestry as we hold our se r vices in the small hall a nd the main chur ch is not hea t ed . Each time we g ather , we spend a short time, sharing mat ters f or pr a y er and then we enter in to open pr a yer with f olk either pr aying aloud as they f eel led or in silence f or various needs and concerns. Pr a yer is an important part of our lif e together and we hope develop our pr ay er times and activities further as we look to our next priorities a nd review our M ission Actio n Plan.

The colourful cast k ept the audience entert ained with a lively perf ormance including music, da nce, laughs-a-ple nty and just the right amount of dr ama to captur e the imaginat ion. It was good to see so many of our y ounger perf ormers, who hav e gr own in confidence ove r time, really giving it their al l. The proceeds from this year’ s performances and associate activities, such as t he ever- popular raffle, will go to support the work of mental healt h charity Mind, Suffolk. Further inf ormation about the work of the organisation may be f ound by visiting their websit e: www  .suff  olkmind.or  g.uk Links with Ca stle Hill School Our minis ter s ha ve been developing links and support ive acti vities wit h the sch ool (s ) opposite the church, Cas tle Hill Inf an t and Junior Schools. On W ednesday 2 nd October we wer e very pleased to welcome the school to the church f or their annual Harvest assemblies. This was a first f or the school and the church . Due to the number o f pupils, they held three g atherings with children organiz ed by their school house teams - acr oss the age r ange.

There was enthusiastic singing, g athering of harvest gifts, poetry and a short mes sage in volving t alking fruit and veget ables given by R evds Adam and David. It was a real joy to welcome the childr en and st af f . The very generous collection of gifts w as shared with

the “T op-up Shop” at Whitton Parish Church and with FIND (Families In Need) in Ipswich. In December we will be hosting the school’ s Christmas Car ol Concerts with three separ at e ev en ts f or Early Y ear s and K ey Stage 1 (4-7), Low er K ey Stage 2 (7-9) and Upper K ey Stage 2 (9-11). R evds Adam and David will be sharing a short Christma s message at these spe cial events. Caf é Style W or ship Our caf é styles services continue to be a f eature (about once a quarter) of our pat tern of wor ship at Castle Hill. They ar e well attended and man y folk enjoy the r elax ed set ting and the opportunity to tak e part in various activities.

Our mos t r ecent caf é s tyle wor ship was held on Sunday 17 th Nov ember . The theme was “The Bible” . As usual we sat together at tables and enjoy ed refr eshmen ts and snacks throughout the ser vice. There was a Bible Quiz, cr afts including a mini-lantern, que stions a nd ideas to discuss a nd some inter esting illustr ations such as a Bible with no wor ds. Our next Café Style Service is sche duled for Sunda y 9 th February 2025. Christie Or g an The org an at Castle Hill is r ather unusual and not the sort you might expe ct to find in a church. It is a theatre or cinema org an with all the bells and whistles (quite lit er ally)

associated with such instrumen ts. It st arted life in t he Century Cinema, Clacton-on-Sea, Esse x wher e it was installed in 1935 by builders Hill, Norman and Bea rd under the ir “Christie” br and. It was opened with a r ecit al in July 1936. The or g an was purchased by the Ipswich Light Or g an Music Society (now Ipswich Theatre Org an Club, IT OC) in 1967 with the in ten tion to install it in Ipswich T own Hall. As this pla n was not able to proceed, it was arr anged f or it to be inst alled in Castle Hill URC. It was opened on 21 st Nove mber 1971. One of the org anists on that da y was John Mann who had pla yed it f our years earlier at the f ar ewell concert in Clacton bef or e its r emov al. The pipes are housed in a lar ge chamber above the stage at the back of t he main church area. The t hree manual console with its classic cinema horseshoe arrange ment of stop c on trols s t ands at gr ound level. It is on a mov eable platf orm and f or r ecitals it is moved to a centr al position in front of the s t ag e. The org an is maintained by the IT OC team. The chur ch has an agreement allowing us to use the instrument in “Classic al Style” f or worship services. Unf ortunately , we do not ha ve a regular org anist an y mor e so it is only pla yed occasionally . Since it’ s installation at the church it has undergone some enlar gement and improvement including the fit ting of a state- of-the-art control s ystem linking the console to the pipes making it more reliable . It ha s some quirks and f oibles which add to the sense of fun and cha llenge when playing it . It will be played, by Revd Adam , f or the Join t Advent Music & Readings Se r vice on Sunday 1 st December , f or our Carols by Candelight

Service on 22 nd December and for the F amily Carol Service on 24 th December .

If you would like to hear it in all its magical theatre organ glory then IT OC hold concerts on Sunday afternoons f our times a y ear . A v ariety of skilled theatre and cinema or g anists are in vited to pla y and the concerts ar e very en tertaining. The da t es f or 2025 ar e as f ollows: 14:30 Sunda y 16 th March 14:30 Sunda y 18 th May 14:30 Sunda y 19 th October 14:30 Sunda y 16 th November Ther e is a charge f or admission of £12. IT OC member s r eceive a discount £10. Annual membe rship is £10 which, in addition to t akings at concerts, goes tow ards the cos t of maintaining the instrumen t. F or further details of member ship you can con t act the club secr etary by emailing pat@gilpat.co.uk and she will be happy to assist . We ar e reliably inf ormed that the concert on 16 th March will be given by the wonderful R obert W olf e who is the resident org anist f or the W urlitz er or gan in F ak enham, Norfolk. He is a very skille d and hig hly entertaining perf ormer . If you visit this link ht  tps://www  .  f  acebook.com/R  obertW  olf  eW urlitze r/videos/891890308783614 you can catch a short blast of one of his previous perf ormances at Castle Hill.

1992. The filled box es, containing gifts and useful it ems, ha v e brough t smiles to thousands of people across E astern Eur ope ov er the y ears. Over 1 million sho e bo x es ha ve been sen t. The box es are sent to people in Ukr aine, Moldova, Bulgaria and R omania, f acing significa nt hardship. The scheme colle cts box es f or entir e f amilies and f or older people so nobody is ex cluded. In the past members and friends of St John’ s ha ve filled box es f or collection but ov er the las t tw o y ears we ha ve, ins t ead ask f or donations of £20 per bo x which also cov ers the tr ansport cost. The money is used by the Link to Hope char ity to obtai n the ite ms and fill the boxes ensuring that everything is cleared for tr ansport and meets the specific requiremen ts of individuals. Items placed in the box es include “priority items” such as toothpas t e and toothbrushe s, candles and holders, small g ames, sweets and choc olates, soap and flannel s. Ot her ite ms include colouring pads, cr a y ons, c alculator s, small toy s, DIY tools, a ccessories, toiletries, Rea ding glasses and items s uch as hot water bottle s and smal l items of clot hi ng. Brownies’ 55 th Anniver sary On Thur sda y 28 th Nov ember the Br o wnies a t St John’ s, the 40 th Ipswich Brownie P ack, will be hosting a special tea party , with invited guests, to mark their 55 th Anniversary . This is a significant mile stone in the work of t he pack and we congr atulat e all those who continue to s upport and participate in this wonderful, activ e or g anisation.

Autumn Da ys On Satur day 19th Oct ober from 14:00 we held, what we hope, will be the first of a series of mini concerts a t Leiston. The title f or the concert was, “ Autumn Day s” . We welcomed f olk fr om the church and wider community f or an entertaining time of music and “banter ” provided by R evd Adam and his wif e Gillian. We wer e tr eated to a v aried pr ogr amme which included org an music (the org an behaved itself thr oughout), songs, r ecorder and pia no music and a bit of a si ng-al o ng. Afterwards we shar ed a delicious afternoon tea in the hall. T asty sandwiches, sausage rolls, cak e g alore (perhaps we could mak e a film about that!) and ple nty of goo d c ompan y and con v ersa tion.

There was no char ge f or admission but we welcomed donations tow ards the w ork and mission of the chur ch. We were pleased to r eceive over £90 in donations. We in tend to hold our next mini conce rt and tea in the first half of 2025 when, hopefully , Spring will be in the air . Leis ton F ood Bank Marion a nd David, with support from f amily members and friends, con tinue to do sterling work in ensuring the f ood bank is open on Frida y and Sa tur da y mornings each week. R ecently Marion and Da vid’ s gr andson Joshua started at univer sity so is no longer available to help on a Friday morning. Thankfully t heir y ounger gr andson Ollie has stepped up to the mark a nd is a wel co me hel p. We would very much welcome furt her donations tow ards the pr ovision of f ood and other essentials. If an y f olk from across the pastor ate would be willing to c on tribut e, please con tact R evd Adam (r  ev  aje@outlook.com) – thank you. Ne w Beginni ngs: Leis t on & Sa x mun dham Unit ed Chur ch (LS UC) Following the de cision of our church meetings to proceed with t he ne cessary arr angements, fr om January , Leiston United Church and Saxmundha m URC will unite as Leis ton & Sa xmundham Unit ed Church (LSUC) – One Church in T wo Loca tions. We will cont inue to hold services and make use of both our buildings but will o perate as one church as f ar as chur ch and elder s’ meetings ar e concerned. We will ha ve one church secretary and one tr easurer with the support, f or both, of an admin assist ant.

Hadleigh URC has be en in vacancy for some time since their minister R evd Bryn Rick ard moved on to work f or a mission org anisation in Oxf ord. Thank y ou to R ev d John Cook (Interim Moderator) and to all the elders and members who ha ve work ed so hard to see the church through thi s time o f change and tr ansition. Please continue to pr ay f or Hadleigh U RC and all the churches in the P astor at e as we look to the futur e together , seek God’ s will and purposes and find new w a ys to support and encour age one another .

Y ou will notice this new ver sion of the P astor ate Logo has been deploy ed as part of the title to this e dition of Conne ct . This incorpor ates Hadleigh and marks the joining of the Leiston and Saxmundham churche s. At 14:30 on Sunda y 9 th F ebruary 2025 there will be a spe cial ser vice to welcome Hadleigh URC in to the pastorate. The service will be held at Hadleig h URC (Market Place, Hadleigh, Ipswich IP7 5DL ), led by th e moder ator R evd L ythan Nev ard and will include the Lor d’ s Supper – a wonderful reminder of our faith and unity . Please k eep an eye out for further details of this time of w or ship t og e ther . Bible Cours e Over the last f ew weeks and looking ahead , a number of people have joine d in the Bible Society Bible Cour se. This is a “whistle-stop” tour of the Bi ble, looking at the conti nuity of the message and story of Scripture fr om Genesis to R ev elation.

Each session include s video prese ntations and opportunitie s for discussion. The course is accompanied by a very well presented manual giving r eminder s of the con ten t cov er ed and illustr ating v arious poin ts.

The cour se is being delivered as a f ace to f ace session in Felixs towe or via Z oom. We are working in partner ship with Methodists fr om the Ipswich Circuit to share in this learning opportunity . We hope, once we ha ve completed the course and f ollowing our Lent c ourse series, to off er opportunities f or people to explore some of the questions and mat ters r aised in greater depth. A series of “Matters Arising ” sessions are being considered. Advent Candle s & Hymn It has been our custom, f or sever al year s now , to mark the weeks of Advent, in each of the pas tor ate churches, by ligh ting candles on an Advent wreath and using the same pr a y ers and h ymn in each church. This y ear is no e x ception. The w ords of the h ymn are set to the tune “Lourdes” . Here are the wor ds of the h ymn and the theme for each of th e candles: W eek One – The Candle of Hope On this day we light the candle o f Hope, e xpressing out belief , that although the world remains l iving in darkness, Christ’ s birth gives hope that what we see is not al l there is. Christ is t he hope of the world. We celebr ate his coming, bringing hope to the troubled world. The firs t Adv ent c andle declares with its f la me, the hope of salv ation secured in Christ’ s name. Be bold, be bright, shine on through the night, God’ s love, God’ s gr ace, revealed in Christ’ s light.

W eek T wo – The Candle of Peace On this da y we light the candle of P eace. Christ came to end division a nd e nmity between peoples and nations. He her alds an acceptance of diff erence and diver sity . He is the Prince of P eace. The second bright candle cries rest f or the soul, God’ s peace, f or the nations, “Shalom” – mak e us whole. Be bold, be bright, shine on through the night, God’ s love, God’ s gr ace, revealed in Christ’ s light. W eek Three – The Candle of Peace On the third Sunday in Adven t, we celebr at e that Jesus’ birt h brings joy to our world. The joy that Christ gives is not supe rficial or passing. It reminds us that in all of lif e’ s moments the re is a deep and resounding rejoicing though the lif e that God gives. The thir d Adven t candle t ells us of deep joy, which nothing in heaven or earth c an des troy . Be bold, be bright, shine on through the night, God’ s love, God’ s gr ace, revealed in Christ’ s light.

W eek F our – The Candle of Love On t his fina l Sunday in Advent, we ligh t the candle of love . God so loved the world tha t he g a ve his only son that whoev er believes in him should not perish but have eternal lif e. Our f ourth candle speaks of the truth fr om above God’ s heart, reaches out to embr ace with true Love. Be bold, be bright, shine on through the night, God’ s love, God’ s gr ace, revealed in Christ’ s light. Christmas Da y – The Christ Light On this da y of celebration, we ligh t the centr al candle, signifying that Jesus is the light of the world. The ligh t of Christ shine s in darkness and bring s ho pe, pea ce, joy and love. We proclaim boldly that Chris t, the light of the worl d, is born. The waiting is ov er , w e welcome the morn. The Christ-light is shi ning , our Saviour is born. Be bold, be bright, come sing with del ig ht, God’ s love, God’ s gr ace, revealed in Christ’ s light.

The seas ons of Adve nt and Christmas mar k the beginning of the Christian year . To mark these special times we have a r ange of opportunities in the pas tor at e churches, to g ather and celebr at e. Her e ar e details of the special times of worship which tak e place ov er the coming weeks. Sunda y 1 st December – Advent Sunda y Cas tle Hill URC 16:00 Music & R eadings for Adven t This is an united service with St John’ s URC marki ng the begi nning of the seas on of prepar ation and waiting f or Christmas. The ser vice includes rea di ngs, reflections, song s and h ymns and pr a yer s. We have our seasonal singer s (dr awn from both churches ) leading t he music. The ser vice i s followed by tea. The service is led by R evd Da vid and R evd Adam will play the or g an and pia no . Sunday 8 th Decem ber St John’ s UR C 10:45 Christmas T oy Service E ach y ear we in vite people to bring new toys to be given f or families in need and who ma y struggle with the added cost of Christ mas. Please do bring a gift to add to the collect ion if you a re able. Our se r vice i s led by R evd David A tkins.

Sunday 15 th Decem ber St John’ s UR C 10:45 Christmas Carol Ser vice We share in a service of readings, r etelling the Christmas story , carols and choir songs . The service is le d by Revd Adam who will also be playing the music for us. Leiston United Chur ch 16:00 Carols & Cak e (Joint Service) This is a relax ed time to celebr ate. We sing f amiliar carols, hear Bible r eadings r ecalling the Christmas Story and r eflective readings. There will be some solo pieces f or listening and after our time of worship we shar e a Christ mas celebration tea. The service is led by R evd Adam who will also provide the music with assistance from his musical wif e Gillia n. T uesday 17 th December Cas tle Hill URC 18:30 Out door Carol Sing This is a new venture f or us – an opportunity for friends from the community to share in a fun time of ca rol singing wit h a short a nd simple messa ge. We meet out side the mai n buil ding. We will be using the Bet hle he m Car ol Sheets so folk will be able to request their f avourites. Aft erw ards we will serve mulle d fruit juice, hot chocolate, mi nce pi es and choc olat e mini -rolls. Sunday 22 nd Decemb er Sa xmundham URC 10:45 Christmas Carol Ser vice (Joint Ser vice) A service of carols, readings and reflection on the events of the fir st Christmas. We welco me Mr William Glasse to lea d our w o r ship.

F elix s t ow e UR C 15:00 F amily Carol Service The singi ng for our se r vice will be led by friendly local choir , Orwell Connection. We will sing f amiliar Christmas carols, shar e readings a nd reflections and enjoy some items presented by the choir to lead us through this joyful ce lebration. The service is led by R evd David and R evd Adam (who will also be playing the org an). Cas tle Hill URC 18:00 Car ols by Candlelight Our Seasonal Singers will again be leading the singing for t his service with a mixt ure of f a vourite c arols, choir songs, r eadings and reflections. The service is led by R evd David , with R evd Adam providing the music. T uesday 24 th December Cas tle Hill URC 16:00 F amily Carol Service A simple, fun service with songs, a retelling of the Christmas story , a short t alk and pr a yers. Come and mark this special time with all the family . The service is led by R evd David and R evd Adam will ag ain be providi ng the music. Leiston Community Car ols 18:30 in P os t Office Square We g ather in P ost Office Square to sing carols and share readings led by member s of the v arious local churches, part of Leis ton Christians T ogether . The music is provided by the Leiston R oyal British Legion Band. St John’ s UR C 23:30 Midnig ht Ser vi ce A simple, traditi onal ser vice including carols, readings, reflection and communion – a great wa y to see in Christmas morning. The ser vice is led by Mr Peter Dawson.

W ednesday 25 th December Cas tle Hill URC 10:30 Christmas F amily W or ship Led by R ev d David. St John’ s UR C 10:30 Christmas F amily W or ship Led by R evd Adam. F elix s t ow e UR C 10:00 Christmas F amily W or ship United Service held at F elixstow e Methodist Chur ch @ T rinity site. Saxmundham URC & Leist on United Chur ch 10:00 Joint Christmas Day W or ship Led by Mrs Sue Li ddell. A kindly 90-year-old gr andmother found buying pr esents f or family and friends a bit much one Christmas, so she wr ote che ques for all of them, to put in the ir Chris tmas cards. In each card she wr ote, “Buy your own present” , and then sent them off . After all the Christmas f estivities wer e ov er , she opened the dr awer of her desk and f ound the cheques! E veryone had r eceived a card from her with “Buy your own present ” writte n inside, but without the cheques!

The opening worship was led by members of Witham URC and include d an over view of some of the work o f the church an d congreg ation in the town. The building is well used in suppo rt of church le d and other community activities, with a community café at its heart and provi sion for people of all ages acr oss the weekly progr amme. Minist er s marking Jubilee y ears since or dination wer e celebr ated by the Moder ator and certific ates wer e pr esen ted. These included: R evd Derek Newton and R evd Malcolm Hill, both marking 70 years, R evd P eter Br ewer , marking 75 y ear s and R evd R oy Muttr am, marking 50 years. The Moder ator also celebr ated the appoin tmen t of R evd Dr P eter McEnhill as Principal of W estminst er College, Cambridge. The main theme and focus of the gathering was Ecumenism. The United R ef ormed Chur ch grew out of the ecumenical moveme nt and has, from the outset, bee n

commit ted to working with our f ellow Chris tians across the r ange of denominations i ncluding ma ny of our local churches being in ecumenical partnerships. Lindsey Br own – URC E v angelism and Ecumenism Officer reminded us the ecumenism is exciting and ver y much part of our DNA as a church. The challenge for t he URC is to r ein vigor ate our ecumenical vision and the need to ensure that each gener ation capt ures the vision of the call to and adv ant ages of working ecumenically . The importance of an approach built on willingness, ope nness to learn a nd a ctive humility in developing r elationships was highligh ted. Lindsey reminded us of the v arious wa ys in which churches c an w ork t ogether in part nership including : working on specific project s; working in a more f ormal partnership f or a particular missional opportunity , with a mor e writ ten agr eement; f orming a “new” church or organisation with a constit ution to outli ne the partnership worki ng. It is in ter esting to note that all of our Ipswi ch and East Mission Action Plans identify wa ys of working in partnership with other loca l churches. This is s omethi ng on which we will cont inue to buil d. Synod ha ve intr oduced “F aith in Action” awards, looking f or e x amples of how churches ar e eng age pr actic ally in missional activities. Aw ards wer e pr esen t ed t o: Whit tlesf or d UR C who ha ve inst alled a Bicycle R epair Station f or use by the man y passing cyclist. Ra yleigh URC f or the “listening place” in the local “Gr eggs” with a volunteer being pr esen t to eng age in lis tening.

Gr eat T otham URC ha ve c onsider able gr ounds and ha ve made some a vailable to the local communi ty as allot ment s. W ymondham URC have made an ar ea of unused land av ailable to the local community as a Happiness Ga rde n. Chris t Chur ch Chelmsf or d ha v e of f er ed a P op-Up school unif orm shop off ering preloved unif orms and other r esources.

The meeting received v arious r eports including Finance and Resources, Y outh and Children, Mission and T raining, General Assembly 2024 (Claire Coster - Hadlei gh URC), the P as tor al Commit t ee and the Synod Clerk. The Moder a tor w elcomed two new minis t er s – R evd Andr ew Madhar ar a – Plume A venue URC, and R evd K ar en K night – Herts and Essex Bor der Mission P artnership. It was also noted that R evd R obert Sheard had been inducte d as minister of Chris tchur ch Needham Mark et. T wo Missional Partner ship ha ve now been officially establishe d – Norwich Area, and Herts and Essex Bor der . Chris tchur ch, Southminster is en tering in to a Loc al Ecumenical P artner ship. We wer e inf ormed of two church closures – T rinity UR C – Norwich, and Christ chur ch LEP in Gr eat Y armouth.

At the close of t he meeting our Mo derator R evd L ythan Nevard led a short service of worship a nd Communion w ith an ecumenical flavour dr awing on litur gy and pr a yer s f or a variety of Christian tr aditions. Something to Mak e Y ou Smile In W ashing ton, a TV reporter w as working on an assig nme nt called, “ The Spirit of Christmas” , so he called the British Embassy and asked to speak to the Brit ish Ambassador . “ Ambassador , ” the reporter said, “y ou have been ver y kind to us through the year and we would lik e to include you in a Christmas news segment we’ re going to run. T ell me, what would you lik e f or Christmas?” The Ambassa dor repl ied, “I am very to uched by your offer , but I must decline to accept an y gift. ” “Oh please, ” said the r eporter , “you r eally ha ve been very helpful to us, so won’t y ou please tell me what you would especially lik e f or Christmas?” Again the Ambassador refuse d, but the r eporter per sist ed, and he finally g a ve in. “ All right then, if you insist. This Christmas I would lik e a jar of mint jelly . ”

The UN Sust ainable Developmen t websit e in troduces the Sustainable Developmen t Goals wit h these words, “T he 2030 Agenda f or Sust ainable Developmen t w as adopted by all U nited Nations Member States in 2015. It provides a blueprint for peace a nd prosperity for people and the planet, now and in to the future. At its heart ar e the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which ar e an ur gen t call f or action by all countries – developed and

developing – in a global partne rship. They recognise that ending poverty and othe r depriv ations must go hand-in-hand with s tr at egies that improv e health and education, reduce inequality , and spur economic gr owth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our ocea ns and f or es ts.” The Sust ainable Development Goals ar e as f ollows: End poverty in all its f orms ev erywher e. End hunger , achieve f ood security and improve d nutrition and promot e sus t ainable agricultur e. Ensure health y lives and pr omote well-being f or all at all ag es. Ensure inclusiv e and equitable quality educ ation and promot e lif elong learning opportunities f or all. Achieve ge nde r equality and empower all wome n and girls. Ensure a v ailability and sus t ainable management of water and sanitation f or all. Ensur e access to aff or dable, reliable, sust ainable and modern energy f or all. Pr omote sus t ained, inclusive and sust ainable economic growth, full and production employment and de cent work f or all.

Build r esilient infr astructur e, pr omote inclusive and sust ainable indus trialisation and f os t er innov a tion. Reduce ine quality wit hi n and among count ries. Mak e cities and human set tlements inclusive, saf e, r esilien t and sustainable. Ensur e sust ainable consumpt ion and production pa t terns. T ak e ur gen t action to combat climate change and its impact . Conserve and sustainably use the ocea ns, sea s and marine r esources f or sus t ainable developmen t. Pr otect, r estor e and pr omote sust ainable use of terr es trial ecosystems, sus t ainably manage f or es ts, combat deserti fication, and halt and r ever se land degr adation and halt biodiv ersity loss. Pr omote peaceful and inclusive societies f or sust ainable developmen t, provide access to justice f or all and build eff ective, accoun t able and inclusive instituti ons at all lev els. Strengthen the mea ns of implement a tion and r evit aliz e the Global P artnership f or Sus t ainable Development.

Some progress ha s been ma de to achiev ing these goals but, with only six y ears to go bef or e the in tended tar get of 2030, pr ogr ess is not as encouraging as had been hoped. Sadly the current global situation, with war s, conflict and political struggle has in f act led to a decline in many of these area s and ha s the potential to further e x asper ate the work of the United Nations in working tow ar ds th em F or ex ample, war s in places such as Gaz a and Sudan ha ve significantly reduced acce ssibility to medical facilities a nd medicine, r ever sing pr ogr ess made towards health and wellbeing f or all. W ars ha ve destroy ed infr as tructur e and pr even t ed access and distribution of essential r esources and f ood. Con flict and climate change ha ve damaged harvests and productivity making food security and sustainability wor se. Inequality of wealth and power bet ween and within nations has meant the rich ha ve become richer and more people f ace poverty . As Christians it is not difficult to recognise, in these goals, our calling a nd commit me nt to love of neighbour , to be good s t ewards of the world and to chal lenge injustice, recogni sing each individual as a chi ld of G od, made in God’ s image. As we ha ve consider ed bef or e, salv ation and reconciliation, through Christ, is about all of creation. As we seek to serve God, to live and shar e the good news, we commit ourselves to humanity w as in tended to be. So what ca n we do? Pr a y: o for peace - hold those places whe re conflict con tinues bef or e God ; o f or leader s of nations that they ma y recognise God’ s wisdom and authority

and car e f or people and the world r ather than wealth and power; o f or all who work to bring help and relief and sust ainability that they ma y be str eng thened and enabled to per sever e; o through each of t he goals a nd ask God to show us wa ys that we, as individuals or as churches, can enhance our commit ment to them. Act b y: o supporting campaigns and org anisations which pr omote the sust ainable developmen t goals; o findi ng out more by v isiti ng the SD G website https://  sdgs.un.or  g/  goals and share this inf ormation with other s; o writing to politi cia ns and leaders, espe cially those of our own natio n, to challenge them to strive tow ar ds securing the SD Gs th roug h poli cy and action; o con tinuing in y our commitment as a good s t ew ar d of cr eation and promoting this to other s; o pi cking a goal and findi ng out a s pec ifi c action or commitme nt that you can pur sue in support of achieving that goal. The United Nations Developmen t Pr ogr amme have a r ange of pr oducts, including gifts (maybe f or Christmas), sold to r aise money to further w ork t ow ards the goals. Y ou can purchase items by visiting https://  shop.undp.org/ All items purchased her e (rather than fr om other sources) con tribut e dir ectly tow ards the work.

The next ed ition of C onnec t wil l be published in Mar ch 2025. If you have an y item s for inclusion, p lease sen d th em to R evd Adam on rev  aje@outlook.com by 20 th F ebruary 2025.

I Heard The Bells On Christmas Da y Henry W adsworth Longfellow I heard the bells on Christmas Da y Their old, f amiliar carols pla y , and mild and sweet The w ords r epea t Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men! And thought how , as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom Had r olled along The unbr ok en song Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men! Till ringing, singing on its way , The world r evolved fr om nigh t to da y , A v oice, a chime, A chan t sublime Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men! Then from each dark, accursed mouth The cannon thundered in the South, And wit h the s oun d The c ar ols drowned Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men! It was as if an earthquak e r ent The hearth-stones of a c on tinen t, And ma de forlorn The  h ouseh ol ds b orn Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men! And in despair I bowed my head; "There is no peace on earth," I said; "F or hat e is s trong, And m ocks the song Of pe ace on eart h, good-will to men!" Then peale d the bel ls more loud and dee p: "God is not dea d, nor doth He slee p; The W r ong shall f ail, The Righ t pr ev ail, With pea ce on earth, good-will to me n."